According to key brokerage data from Goldman Sachs, hedge funds have been piled up in record numbers of short bets on stocks as expected tariffs on President Donald Trump wreaked havoc on Wall Street. The fast money professional trader won the largest daily net sales of global stocks from last Thursday to Thursday, the day after Trump unveiled his sweeping taxation, and Goldman had been collecting data since 2010. The hedge fund quickly added protection as fears increased that Trump had caused a global trade war leading to a recession. Trump’s policy can effectively raise US tariff rates from 2.5% to 20% to the past 20%, even at the highest level since 1910, than the devastating Smoot Holy tariffs of 1930, which many economists believe are contributing to the Great Repression. The Dow Jones Industrial Average took over a loss of 1,500 points for the first time in its 129-year history last Thursday and Friday. The S&P 500 has plummeted 10% over the last two days. .dji 5d Mountain Dow Jones Industrial Average Villionaire Investor Stanley Druckenmiller made a rare comment over the weekend, repeating his opposition to tariffs above 10%. Another billionaire investor, Leon Cooperman, said the bottom is still not in place and the stock is expected to continue its downward spiral. The chairman and CEO of the Omega Family Office believes Trump’s tariffs are “mistakes” and that it will put the US economy in a recession. According to Goldman, nine of the S&P 500’s 11 investment sectors held net sales last week, led by discretionary stocks in finance, technology and consumers. Financial sales were at the fastest pace since January 2021 and at the second fastest pace on record, Wall Street investment bank said. “The lower prices have pulled huge sells from many corners of our franchise. As one of the greatest traders of all time said, “People are just in self-protection mode,” Pascalielo said. Pasquariello noted that the price that can occur when there are a huge number of short positions increases the chances of “promiscuous, short cycle lips.” That was proven on Monday when stocks were seen dramatically in response to headlines covering the Trump administration’s changing trade policy.
